Recent survey results show that candidates with significant political backing kept the lion’s share of voter preference going into the final stretch of the elections.
For the presidential race, Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. of Partido Federal Pilipinas, continues to lead the pack with a 56% share, followed by Vice President Leni Robredo, an independent, with 24%, based on the Pulse Asia Survey from March 17 to 21 among 2,400 “likely voters.”
Among the vice-presidential aspirants, Davao City Mayor and the Lakas Christian Muslim Democrat bet Sara Duterte is ahead with 56%, while Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III, of the Nationalist People’s Coalition, trails at 23% in the same survey.
(Read VERA FILES FACT SHEET: What you need to know about the presidential, VP hopefuls Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4)
Meanwhile, the other hopefuls for president and vice president share less than 2% of the votes, placing them in the second-page reports of pollsters.
Despite their dismal showing in surveys, some of these candidates doubt these polls truly reflect the Filipino vote.
Manny SD Lopez, vice presidential bet of the Labor Party Philippines, believes in the power of social media. Interviewed by VERA Files, the economist, and technology management expert said that towards the home stretch, voters will “not be swayed by samples of 1,200 people stating their preference based on questions that likely favor one candidate over the other.”
Presidential candidate Jose “Joey” Montemayor echoes this and even claims to have a “very high” chance of winning because of his over 30 years of “indirect campaigning” in churches and medical, legal, and socio-civic organizations. Montemayor describes himself as a cardiologist, medical technologist, economist, and lawyer.
Both Lopez and Montemayor have consistently ranked in the bottom half of the national surveys by Pulse Asia and the Social Weather Stations.
Yet their poor showing has not deterred their bids to secure the top posts in the country.
Lopez says his core team of a dozen volunteers has adopted a “hybrid campaign strategy” to reach more Filipinos: using social media groups and messenger accounts as well as holding in-person “drive-by” campaigns in cities and municipalities.
“Taking all these together and amplified before social and mainstream media, I would think the seeds that we would be planting would eventually prosper and grow and become part of public policies,” he adds.
For Montemayor, his presidential campaign, so far, has been “holistic,” as he combined personal visits in Northern Luzon provinces and engaging voters on his Facebook page.
“I have convinced a lot [of people] lalo ‘pag narinig na nila ako (especially when they hear) how I explain things,” Montemayor explains, adding that he does not depend on money or popularity but on the spiritual support of his volunteers.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) allows in-person campaigning based on the current alert level system and regulates campaign advertisements of candidates on social media and the internet.
(Read VERA FILES FACT SHEET: Campaigning during the COVID-19 pandemic)
Offering ‘realistic’ solutions for ‘most urgent’ concerns
Earning the Filipino vote means addressing the “most urgent national concerns.”
A January 2022 Pulse Asia pre-electoral survey showed that Filipinos are concerned about controlling inflation, improving workers’ pay, reducing poverty, fighting graft and corruption in government, and creating more jobs.
(See VERA FILES FACT SHEET: Where candidates for the country’s top posts stand on voters’ ‘most urgent’ concerns Part 1, Part 2)
Lopez, who is running without a president, proposes a 10-point socio-economic and political agenda that focuses on the creation of a new Omnibus Investment Code “to improve the way we do business, enhance local productivity, and competitive advantage.”
Although his campaign is not as well-funded as other candidates, Lopez finds it “encouraging” that after sharing his solutions to the country’s problems, he receives a lot of inquiries and people are “asking to be given a role” in his campaign.
“Many are asking for basic campaign materials and we are trying hard to provide,” he says.
Appearances in public debates and free live streaming of “e-rallies” of national candidates hosted by mainstream media and the Comelec have also generated attention for his campaign.
“It’s a major opportunity because you can quickly compare the intellectual caliber of the candidates,” says Lopez, who filed for senator in the 2019 elections but was later disqualified.
He notes that many candidates “are throwing out suggestions and proposals that are only meant to entice voters,” hitting those who promise free social services.
Montemayor, on the other hand, says to facilitate economic recovery, the government must improve its fiscal and monetary policies.
“We have to stimulate the economy by government spending… Make available ‘yung loans sa mga maliliit na operasyon, sa mga pamilya i-open natin yung mga discount windows, not only to the corporations but also the cooperatives,” he explains during the first Comelec debate on March 19.
The presidential aspirant has also highlighted his pandemic response by employing medical doctors and health workers at checkpoints and “patronizing alternative medicine” in all barangays.
VERA Files Fact Check has flagged and debunked some of Montemayor’s claims about COVID-19 vaccination. (Read VERA FILES FACT CHECK: Presidential aspirant Joey Montemayor understates COVID-19 vaccination numbers, omits context on need for boosters and VERA FILES FACT CHECK: Montemayor’s claim that COVID-19 vaccines expose people to infection is BASELESS)
Barely a month before the May 9 polls, candidates press forward in their campaigns, hoping to convince the 65.47 million Filipino voters. (See VERA FILES FACT SHEET: The Filipino vote in May 2022)
Montemayor believes that God will back his victory, drawing inspiration from David against Goliath in the Bible.
Lopez says he has an appeal compared to other vice-presidential candidates in the lineup. “The moment they get to know us and they get to know the program of government,” he says.
“I will zero in on their mindset to be able to convince them to consider me as an option in order to better address the serious problems.”